Gage



C. M. GEARING.

GAGE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 18, 1915. 1,341,978.

Fig.1

- v INVENTOR; 1 Q W S 0 Q5 ByCharIes Mfiearmg,

Patented June 1, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1- c. M. IGEARING.

GAGE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 18, 19l5-,

Patented June 1, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

IN VENZOIf, Charla; M Gear Ill ATTORNEY.

CHARLES M. GEARING, or HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, nssren'on. ro THE NEWDEPARTURE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF

CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT. G

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES M. GE kRING, a citizen of the United States,residing at Hartford, county of Hartford, State of Connecticut, haveinvented a certain new and useful Gage, of which the following is afull,clear, and exact description, such as will enable others skilled in theart'to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being hadto the accompanying drawin s, forming part of this spec fication.

1y invention relates to gages and more particularly to gages for gagingand sorting 1 balls suchasoare used in ball bearings for example.

In gaging and sorting devices as heretofore constructed, and having agaging-slot with diverging sides along which the articles, as'balls, areadapted to travel, a difliculty has been that thea'rt'icles would wedgein the slot, due to their weight, causing a.

' slowomovement of the articles and thus resulting in a slow-speeddevice. Another and more serious diflicultywas'that-the articles would,due to their weight, be forced e.,

wedged through the-slot too soon, 21a,

ahead of the gaging pointaccurately corresponding'thereto, resulting inan inaccurate and unsatisfactory separation of the balls. I have devisedama'chine, of the gaging-slot type, in which the articles are at alltimes so supported as to counteract the tractional or wedging effectof-gravity during all their travel along the slot whereby the aforesaidWedging effect is eliminated'and accurate gaging brought about.

One object of my lnvention is to provide a gaging-slot gaging device inwhich the arti-f cles are at all tinfes so supported as to counwedgmgefi'iect of teract the tractional or gravity.

Another object is to provide a device of the character indicated inwhich although the articles are supported during all their travelagainst the tractionalefiect of gravity, the articles are during all oftheir travel in contact with the sides of the gaging-slot and inposition to drop therethroifgh at the points accurately corresponding totheir rev spective dimensions.

To-\ these ends Specification of Letters Patent.

through the slot sorted.

and alsoto improve gen- BRISTOL, CONNECTICUT, A

AGE.

erally upon devices of the character indicated my invention consistsv.in the Various matters hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings I Figure 1 is a side elevation of a gagingmachine embodying my invention, certain [parts beingpartially brokenaway the better to show the construction, portions of, thehopper beingomitted to economize space and the closure plate vbeing shown inpartially retracted position; Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the gagingparticularly described, my invention as em- Patented June 1, 1920.Application filed May- 18, 1915. Serial No. 28,999.

bodied in a machine .for gaging spherical steel balls it will beunderstood that I do not limit myself to such machines.

Referring now to the drawings, conveniently carried upon a base-frame,indicated generally as 1, are two cylindrical gaging.- slot-definingelements 2 and 3 which provide the trackway along which the balls 4 tobe gaged traveL' The travel of the balls is preferably effected by theinclining of the elements 2- and 3 at a suitableangl'e tothe horizontalas illustrated.v The elements 2 and 3 diverge slightly and graduallyfrom each other whereby the slot 5 between" them increases slidghtl inwidth from its forward (upp e11 a slot of .this' character the ballswill of to its back (lower) end. With course roll along and uponreaching the points upon the slot corresponding in width to theirrespective diameters will 1 drop and thus be gaged and At least one ofthe slot-defining elements;

as 3, is mounted for rotation about its lonf gitudinal axis, beingrotated by any suitable driving mechanism, 'as that indicated gem erallyat 6. The roller 3 is rotated in a direction to carry its slot definingside upward 3 from the slot, 2'. e., inthe direction. of the arrows.This relative upward travel of the slot defining surface of the roller'3causes the roller to exert a lifting effect upon the ballsbeing gagedand the sinking-through) or wedging efi'ect 0n the balls caused by thetractional effect of gravity on the balls is thereby counteractedandov'ercome.- The result is accurate gaging even though, as in thepresent instance, a slot with very gradcharacter which at any time takesthe ball ually diverging sides is employed. Of course the speed ofrotation. of the roller is preferably such as to exert this liftingeffect only to the extent of preventing the sinking-through or wedgingeffect and is not so reat. as to lift the balls out of accurate gaglngcontact with the sides of the slot 5.

With a construction such as described it will be seen that each ballwill without wedglng its way through, or sticking in, the slot travelalong the slot up to the gaging point accurately corresponding with suchballs dimensions- Thus inaccuracy due to a .ball wedging through theslotnder its weight and ahead of'its proper gaging polnt is eliminated.and the ball drops through theslot at such proper gaging point. Alsobecause this wedging effect is eliminated the balls" will not stick inthe slot to reduce their speed-of travel and-therefore the machine ishigh-speed.

It will be seen that the rotating roller, although it exerts the desiredlifting effect, is not, as distinguished from, those step-by-stepmachines in which means are provided for lifting the balls clear of thetrack, moving-them "forward a step and again depositlng them on thetrack, of a from the track to thereby prevent its -dropping throughexactly at its proper gaging point. ,On the contrary the roller at alltimes permits the ball to remain in gagin contact with the track duringits enti travel therealong' By providing a means for propelling theballs wholly distinct from the roller 3, as the inclined frame whichcauses the ball to be 7 propelled by gravity,,it is possible to grindthe cylinder 3 accurately to size whereby each of itselements willprovide an accurate strai ht line slot-edge or straight-edge, thuseliminating'the practical impossibility of accurate grinding incident toa construction in which an rotating-member which serves as a slot-sideis constructed, for example, in the form of a screw for-propellin theballs.

referably a feeding means, indicated generally as 7 and more fullydescribed hereinafter,;'which feeds the balls to the.

. eo gagin slot one ata'time and slightly separate from each other isemployed. The separation of the balls 1s conducive to'accuracy because,even sliould it occur that" each ball did not travel at exactl the samespeed as all the others,'there woul be no chance of the ballspyramiding, i. 0., of a ball being lifted from the trackway by sidepressure from some of the others, such as might "occur were a ballin'contact with the two at each side of it.- I find that the rotatingroller 3 aids materiallyin maintaining the initial .separation of theballs throughout their travel.

- Thus a machine embodying myinvention preferably embodies a pair ofgaging-slotdefining elements, as the, cylinders 2 and.

3, one of which at least, as 3, is in the character of a smoothuninterrupted roller, say a cylinder, adapted for rotation upwardawayfrom the slot, such elements, as 2 and 3, being arranged to provide agaging slot with gradually diverging sides, and means, as the inclinedframe 1, distinct from the rotating cylinder for causing the travel ofthe balls along the gaging-slot, it being desirable to provide'means, asthe feed 7 for delivering the balls one at a time and spaced apart tothe gaging- The.

bringing the elements into .contact with the pins.

For accurate shifting the clamps 8 and 9 it is desirable toprovide eachclamp with means such for example as (see Fig. 3) the adjusting screw 12threaded into a fixed part of the. structure, as at 13 and passingloosely through the base of the clamp but held against longitudinaltravel with respect thereto by the collar 14 fixed to the clamp andfittin .in the circular:

groove 15 of the screw. 11 order that theclamp may he slid upon thereduced end of the cylinder the base of: the clampfmay be in twosections splined together as shown, and held by screws 17.

The rotating cylinder} 3 is: vshown as A mounted in the journal blocksdesignated generally as 16- and 17 respectively. .Each of these journalblocks is preferably constructed as shown more particularly in Fig.-

1 3 wherein the bow-shaped main portion .18- Y is provided with aprojecting contact por.-.

tion-19 of any desired width longitudinally of the cylinder for bearingupon the roller 3,'the movable block portion 20 is provided with similarprojecting contact elements 21,,'21,'.for bearingon the roller 3,'andrset bolts22, 22,, are adapted to force thepiece -20"towardtheroller 3 and thus bring the I SO 1 contacts, or bearing elements proper,19,.

21, and 21 into intimate bearing contact with the roller. 3 whereinthey, in effect, grind their tracks. The advantage of this constructionis that a much more accurate bearing is obtainedone practicallyewith out1o'oseness-'-than an ordinary journal box I 7 would provide.

cam being rotated as by being fast connected Preferably theroller 3 isdriven by the driving gear 6 in mesh with the driven gear 23, thedriving shaft 24 and the d uble universal joint connection 25; I

The before referred to ball feed is preferably constructed as follows.The ball delivery pipe 26 is perforated at 27 for the rethe passage ofballs but when in retracted position permits, by virtue of the ballaperture 33 (Fig. 2), the passage of balls. For reciprocating the plate32 it is preferably carried upon an arm 34.0scillatablymoui1ted upon theframe of the machine, as at 35, and carrying a roller or cam-follower 36received in the endless cam slot 37 of the cam 38, the

with the roller 3.

' With the above construction it will be seen that as thecam 38 rotatesthe plate 32 is reciprocatedi When the plate32 is in retracted positionthe aperture is. in register 40 with the pipe 26, permitting a ball todrop to the gagingguideway. At thistime the. pin

. 28 lS projected into the hole 27 and-holds up the column'of ballsabove it. j When the plate 32 advances it closes thepipe and, by

virtue of the plate contacting the shoulder 31 of the pin 28, the pin ispushed back'per- I mitting the column of balls to move down i the pipethe distance of one ball and rest on feed pipe sufficiently short to-not interferewith .full reciprocation, as the' illustratedsupplementaryfeed'pipe 26". )Thusthe balls the p'late.- When the plateretreatsthe pin,"

by virtue of the spring '30, advances and inserts itself betweeni thebottom and the nextto-the-bottom ballg a'nd' holds up the column exceptfor the bottom ball. The aperture 33 now registers with the pipearrd'thebottom ball is permittedto .drop onto; the .g'uideway being guided, ifdesired, by a supplementary are deliveredgto and" spaced ashort distanceapart.-

.y, Preferahlya u-itable hopper ;.39 1

the guidew-ay one at .a time vided. for. containing the' bal1s"an1d maycom prise stationary bottom with its outlet 41, the side 42, and thecone shaped false bottom 43, the. two latter being connected forrotation with the central spindle 44 in any suitable manner and as ofcourse well known .in the art, and the spindle 44 being rotated as bythe drivingconnections indicated gen erally'as 45. p a

Preferably a suitable means, as for example the series of ball receivingpipes 46, is provided below the slot for maintaining the separationbrought about by the gaging process.

It will be' understood that, although- I i have illustrated thestraight-edge element 2 asa cylinder (that form being preferable as,

upon a given portion of the surface becoming worn, the cylinder may beturned slightly in its clamps to bring a new surface into use, thuseliminating the very frequent regrinding incident to mere plainstraight-' edged stri s" of material,) I 'do not restrict myself to t atform as any other suitable element giving astraight-edge may be used.

It will also be understood that although I i have illustrated adevice'having but one. ro

tating cylindrical straight-edge element I do not restrict myself to adevice having but one rotating straight-edge element.

In the particular machine illustrated and which is more particularlyadapted for gaging balls within a limit. of .0001 inch I may.

; use a gaging slot about seven inches long and make such slot .001 inchnarrower at the forgtopfend than at .the back (bottom) '1 f course I donot restrict myself to ward end. these dimensions and indeed, 1n thepresent drawings the taper of the'slot, inorder'the I better to showthe-invention is considerably greater than v.001 inch to seven inches.It will beseen that I have provided a de- Ivice of the characterindicated which is simple, comparativelyinexpensive to manu- 5 facture,high-speed. and capable of great ac curacy.

Having thus described invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Let ters Patent is L-In a device of the character indicated,

a pair of gaging-slot-defining elements so 10- cated with respect toeach other as to provide a gaging-slot, one of said elementsbeing-rotatable, means for rotating such element, means for feeding thearticles'to .be gaged to said slot; suc'h meansfc'omprising a deliverypipe and a"re ciprocatingclosure plate for controlling exit from saidpipe; and

means operatively connecting said rotative slofidefining -element "andsaid plate and trols the'reciprocation of said plate such last namedmeans comprislng a camconnectedfor rotation with said rotatable elementpro-.

and havingits'c am surface contoured to re- *ciprocate the follower ofsaid cam during 'saidcam s rotation, an oscillatably mounted armconnected with said plate, and a folwhereb'y saidlelement duringrotation con--.

travel along fiuenced by any-of the other articles; and

lower for said cam connected with said arm and contacting said cam;substantially as described?" 2. In an instrument of precision for gagingarticles, a pair of gaging-slot-defining elements so located withrespect to each other as to provide a gaging-slot, one of said elementsbeing in the character of a roller with a smooth uninterrupted surfaceand having its rotational axis extending in the direction of said slot,means for rotating said roller in a direction to cause its slot definingside to travel upward from said,

slot, means for feeding the articles to said slot one at a time and inseparated relation; saidroller acting to overcome the tractional effectof gravity upon said articles whereby said. articles W111 not, due totheir weights,

pass through said slot before reaching the gage points upon said slotaccurately corresponding to the respective articles and also acting topreserve the initial separation of the articles brought about by saidfeeding 'means whereby each article is'given a free travel along saidslot free from and unin-' fluenced by any of the other articles; and

, such-feeding, means comprising a delivery pipe and a reciprocatingclosure plate for controlling exit from said pipe; and means operativelyconnecting said rotative slot-defining-element and said plate andwhereby said element during rotation controls the reciprocation of saidplate; substantially as described.

3. In an instrumentof precision for. gaging articles, a pair ofgaging-slot-defining elements so located with respect to each other asto provide a gaging slot, one of said elements being in the character ofa roller with a smooth uninterrupted'surface and having its rotationalaxis extending in the direction of said slot, means for rotating saidroller in a direction to cause its slot defin- Iing side to travelupward from said slot,

such feeding means comprising a delivery pipe and a reciprocatingclosure plate for controlling exit from said pipe;"and means operativelyconnecting said rotative slot-de' fining-element and said plate andwhereby said element during rotation controls the re I ciprocation ofsaid plate; such last named means comprising a cam connected for rotation with said rotatable element and having its cam surface contoured toreciprocate the follower of said cam during said cams rotation, anoscillatably mounted arm connected with said plate, and a follower forsaid camconnected with said arm and contacting said cam; substantiallyas described.

4:, In an instrument of precision for gaging articles, a pair ofgaging-slot-defining elements so located with respect to each other asto provide a gaging-slot, one-of said elementsbeing in the character ofa roller with a smooth uninterrupted surface and having its rotationalaxis extending in the direction of said slot, means for rotating saidroller in a direction to cause its slot defining sideto travel upwardfrom said slot, and means for feeding the articles to said slot one at atimeand in separated relation; said roller acting to overcome thetractional effect of gravity upon said articles whereby said articleswill not, due to their weights, pass through said slot before reachingthe gage points upon said slot ac-- curately corresponding to therespective articles and also acting to preserve the initial separationofthe articles brought about by said feedingmeans whereby each articleisgiven a free travel along saidslot free from and uninfluenced by any ofthe other articles; and such ceding means comprising an article deliverypipe of a cross-section suflicient to accommodate a single-file columnof articles and having its open end in delivery relation to said slot,such pipe being provided in the side with an article-stop-pin-receivingaperture, a reciprocatively mounted article-stop-pin arranged forinsertion in and withdrawal from said aperture, a re- I ciprocativelymounted closure plate at said open pipe-end and having anarticle-aperture therein to be moved into and out of register with saidpipe-end during reclprocation of said closure plate, and means forreciprocating said pin and plate constructed and arrangedto move theimperforate portion of said plate into register with said 1pipe-end whensaid pin is retracted and move the article-aperture of said plate intoregister with said' pipe-end when said pin is inserted in saidpinzreceiving aperture;

substantially as described,

In testimony whereof, I hereunto aflix my signature, in the presence oftwo witnesses.

? CHARLES M; GEARING Witnesses:

HAROLD A. KINGSBURY, WM. E. WIGHTMAN,

